Chalice Heralds
The Chalice Heralds are a Loyalist Successor Chapter of the proud and valiant Blood Angels created during an Unknown Founding. Most of their history has been lost and their own records are either incomplete or destroyed. Because of this they guard their history and only tell those they trust their origins. Despite their laudable history and numerous battle honours, there yet remains a shadow of the Blood Angels' genetic flaw that lingers ever about the Chalice Heralds. They search for a mysterious artifact that they call The Chalice, and they believe that when they find it all the sons of The Great Angel will be cured of the Black Rage and the Red thirst. With a history of heroism and valour as laudable as some more venerable Chapters, it is easy to see why they are heralded far and wide across the Imperium as exemplars of the Great Angels' lineage. They have vanquished foes far and wide from Orks to Chaos Space Marines, and always upheld the honour of their Chapter, and founding Legion. Chapter History Much of the Chalice Heralds origins are obfuscated by the midst of time and the long march of millennia. Much has been lost during their long and glorious history, and no one alive, is able to pinpoint exactly when they were created. However, extant records indicate that for most of the Heralds' history, they were at full strength but at the start of the 40th Millennium they began to take extreme amounts of casualties. Whole companies were being whipped out one after another. The reason being the current chapter master, Amadeus the Leviathan, was becoming more and more aggressive and reckless. He would send his companies into the most ferocious battles he could find, and when asked why he simply said, "The emperor wills it." To the dismay of his battle brothers, Amadeus would not relent and soon the chapter was on the brink of extinction and Amadeus was showing signs of the Red Thirst. He became distant from his brother, not letting anyone into his private chambers in The Keep. This continues until the first captain Uther the Dragon entered Amadeus's chambers while he was away from The Keep. And what Uther found shocked him to the core. On the walls, written in blood were heretical teachings and symbols, and the bodies of serfs were found drained of blood. Uther told the Head Apothecary and High Chaplin about his horrible findings they tried to confront Amadeus when he returned to The Keep, when the trio confronted him he flew into a rage and attacked them. He killed the Head Apothecary and High Chaplin with his lightning claws and began to do battle with Uther. He then began to revile his true plan. All the deaths on his hands were to be offered up to the dark gods of chaos and he would rise to demon-hood. At this, Uther bellowed out a cry of pure rage and brought his chain fist down upon Amadeus and dealt a mortal wound to him. But Before Uther could end the trator he set of melt charges he had place in the chapter's archives and distorted the chapter's history. As he did so and before Uther plunged his chain fist into Amadeus' chest he screamed, "If I fall so shall the Angel's Heralds!" After the death of Amadeus, Uther the Dragon took his place as chapter master and had to begin building up what was left of the chapter. Uther covered up Amadeus's true intentions and had it written that he was taken by the Black Rage and died an honorable death so that non would question the loyalties of the chapter. But in this dark time, a light of hope appeared in the form of a vision Chief Librarian Merlios had. He saw an Astartes in the heraldry of the Chalice Heralds reaching for a golden chalice while standing on a pile of red and black corpses. After this vision Merlios had to be entombed in a dreadnought, but before he lost consciousness he told Uther that the chalice was a gift from the Great Angel and that if they found it all of his sons would be cured. At this, Uther dedicated his chapter to finding this Chalice, by any means necessary, and so He began to change how the chapter operated. He made all companies battle companies, and had each company responsible for its own recruiting. Moving on, he made it so companies will no longer be numbered and instead have their own title and heraldry showing their company upon their right shoulder pad. He then decreed that the chapter will look for anything that will lead them closer to the Chalice and, because of their diminished state, they may scavenge for equipment and keep this fact hidden from all. And finally Uther made is so that all Chaplains will make sure the newly made Questing Companies will uphold The Great Quest For the Chalice. In their search for The Chalice the Chalice Heralds have been to almost every corner of the Imperium. Their Questor Companies have appeared in many battles on many worlds, and are known for their willingness to answer to almost any call for aid. And all who they fight beside find them to be an honorable chapter and ferocious combatants. But, the search for The Chalice goes above all else and the Chalice Heralds will do almost anything do obtain information on its whereabouts. This has on occasion caused them to have a strange reputation with other forces of the Imperium. Indeed the Chalice Heralds are great boon in battle but afterwards they tend to disappear or be seen heading off in a random direction. The Chalice Heralds are no strangers to casualties and there have been times that a Questor Company has been wiped out completely. One one such occasion Questor Company Repentant was sent into a space hulk to investigate a rumor that there was an old recording that held information on The Chalice. The captain of the company, Ivor The Avenger, was too eager to obtain this relic and sent the majority of his men into the space hulk before properly scouting it. It turned out to be a trap set by a chaos warband known as The Unbroken. They massacred those sent into the space hulk and had ships waiting to pounce upon the company battle barges. Ivor sent out a distress call to captain Wolfgang the Lance of Questor Company Gallant in hopes they would make it in time. But, by the time Wolfgang arrived it was too late. Ivor was slain and his company destroyed. His body was returned to The Keep and placed in the Great Hall along side all the other fallen captains of the chapter. When Commander Dante call all those of the blood to Baal the Chalice Heralds answered and sent two full Questor Companies. There they fought bravely and with honor but in the end only one marine survived. He was the first to see the Primaris reinforcements. Together they returned to Camoris to report to Uther. When they did Uther was enraged and said "I sent two whole companies to Baal, and this is what returns?! A shamed champion and strangers in our colors claiming they are our brothers?!" ''After Uther was calmed he decreed that two new Questor Companies would be made to replace the ones who were lost. The Primaris were given their own company and the only survivor of Baal was promoted to captain. After the events Vigulis Uther has sent the Questor Companies closer to the Eye of Terror for on Vigulis he discovered more clues to the location of the Chalice. The Questor Companies are now trying to make there way to the Eye of Terror but it is slow going. With the chaos the imperium is in many worlds cry out for aid, and the Chalice Heralds now must chose what is most important to them. The safety of the Imperium or the Chalice they so long for. Notable Campaigns The Taking of hive world Gregor Gadwin the Champion was sent to the hive world of Gregor to investigate a mysterious tome that was in the planetary governor's private collection. Upon reaching Gregor they discovered it to be in the midst of civil war as it appeared that the governor had declared that he would make a new empire with him as it's leader. Gadwin wasted no time and immediately sent his newly made Questor Company down to the planet's surface. In drop pods and Thunder Hawks they made their way to the center of the hive and the governor's palace. Striking with such speed that the traitors had no time to react, Gadwin and his company cut through the defenses out side the palace. Gadwin than personally lead the charge through the palace his jump pack roaring as he crashed through the main doors. The fighting was shift and bloody, but it was a good day for the Chalice Heralds for there were no casualties and no brother was taken by either the Red thirst or Black Rage. Once Gadwin reached the vault the governor was cowering in he and his honor guard interrogated him about the tome but the governor had apparently distorted it after reading it and refused to give up it's secrets. To this Gadwin dragged the governor out of his hole and had him executed for the whole world to see so that all would know the fate of traitors. The Defense of forge world Alpha Nexus Uther the Dragon and Girardus the Righteous were on Alpha Nexus upholding a promise the chapter made to the forge would. An Ork Waagh was approaching the planet and the Chalice Heralds were sworn to protect it. To do this, Uther commanded that they would intercept the Orks before the reached the planet. So the fleet gather and made for the incoming Orks, The Dragon's Lair at its head. Soon the two fleets met and a terrible battle began. The Ork ships tried to break through the Chalice Heralds' fleet but were stopped short and forced in to combat. Ships crashed into ships, torpedoes slammed into hulls, and great barrages from broadsides cut vessels in half. As casualties began to rise Uther and Girardus ordered that boarding actions would be taken. Together they teleported on the the warboss's ship, but were separated in the process. Uther and his honor guard headed towards Girardus's locator signal. Clad in cataphractii terminator, they slaughtered their way to Girardus. But, when they reached him, what Uther saw filled him with fury. Girardus laid broken and bloody at the feet of the warboss, who appeared to be laughing. The warboss than began to say something but was drowned out in Uther's cry of rage as he charged the beast his bolter screaming with him as it shot out a storm of fire. The warboss, not expecting this, was caught off guard and was slow to react. Uther made him pay for his mistake and rammed The Maw into the warboss's chest, staggering him. The warboss than swung his cleaver at Uther catching him in the side but be for he could do anything more Uther's honor guard attacked and mortally wounded the Ork. Uther than grabbed the xeno's head and crushed it to a pulp. Uther than ordered the wounded Girardus to be taken by the apothecary and they both returned to The Dragon's Lair. The remainder of the Ork Waagh was slaugther leaving no survivors as to the wishes of Girardus who was shamed by his injuries and wanted vengeance. The Bloody Fields of Agris IV Wolfgang the Lance and Gadwin the Champion were convening with each other in the Agris system when a ship barring the heraldry of High Chaplin Mordred docked with Wolfgang's flag ship Fire of Wrath. Wolfgang and Gadwin met with Mordred to see what brings him here. Mordred declared that both Questor Company Gallant and Questor Company Retribution would accompany him to the agri of Agris IV. The two captains were confused why to whole Questor Companies were needed to go to an agri world but they would never question the High Chaplin. They than left for Agris IV and prepared for battle. Once they reached the world they discovered it to be in the midst of a chaos invasion. The traitor World Eaters had set there blood shot eyes on the world. Chapter Homeworld Camoris Camoris is a large moon that orbits the gas giant Angel's Beacon. It is considered to be a tribal world for its inhabitants are barley past what would be considered the stone age of old Terra. It is a barren world were little grows and the only source of water is either deep with the planet or in its frozen seas. The tribes war with one another over the few resources and have to compete with the indigenous fauna. The greatest of these is the Golden Drake, a large, winged lizard creature that is the apex predator of the world who is ritually hunted in the trials to become a member of the chapter. The world is rocky and has no mountains due to the fact it has been pelted with asteroids seine it was been formed. instead it is covered with craters and canyons. The inhabitants of the Camoris live in these craters and canyons where caves keep them safe from the asteroids falling from the sky. They only venture out to hunt or to make war on other tribes. Fortress-Monastery The chapter's Fortress-Monastery is known as The Herald's Keep. It is a fortress built in the center of a great crater and the fortress itself looks like a castle from the middle age of Terra. It is there that the whole chapter meets every two hundred years to share what they have leaned and to gather information on the whereabouts of The Chalice in what is called The Gathering. The Great Hall is where the bodies of all former captains are laid to rest and their personal banners stand vigil over them. The Council Table is were all the senor members of the chapter gather to discuses. It is a round stone table that has its center carved into the shape of the chapter badge. Below the fortress monastery is a network of catacombs that connect to various points trough the monastery. It is there that the dead of the chapter are laid to rest. The whole of the monastery is covered by a domed energy shield that protects it from invasion and environmental hazards. The Herald's Keep is decorated with statues of angels battling with demons, gargoyles, and depictions of the Astaties from Merlios's vision. Chapter Organisation Headquarters Chapter Command Uther the Dragon is the head of the chapter and has the final say in all things. He has no company of his own instead he travels with a company of his choosing than he will move to another one when he sees it is appropriate. He of course has an honor guard made up of the most elite members of the chapter all clad in relic Cataphractii Terminator Armor like himself. They serve a duel purpose, to protect and advice their chapter master, and kill him if he falls to either of the twine curses. Reclusiam The Reclusiam is separate from the Questor Companies and chaplains move from company to company ensuring that The Great Quest is being upheld. The High Chaplin Mordred is in control of all chaplains and has the responsibility of gathering, listing, and safe guarding the chapter's most valued relics. Only him and Uther are allowed entry in to the deepest parts of the Reclusiam. Librarius Because of the actions of Amadeus, the Librarius of the Chalice Heralds is in a weakened state. Like the Reclusiam, they are separate from the Questor Companies and send their librarians to those companies that request support. The Chief Librarian is Merlios, who is now in a dreadnought. The only reason he is no longer Chief Librarian is because he was the one who had the vision that sent the Chalice Heralds on their Great Quest. Specialist Formations The Knights Recluse The Knights Recluse are members of the chapter who work as messengers, foot soldiers, and body guards for the chaplains. They are the eyes and ears of the Reclusiam and it is considered a bad omen in the chapter when the Knights Recluse are around. No one except Mordred and Uther know their identities, and how and why members are chosen to join their ranks. Questor Companies The chapter is split in to ten companies, in this they follow the Codex, but they diverge in the fact that each company is a battle line company and is responsible of its own recruiting. These companies are called Questor Companies. Companies are titled instead of numbered and have their captain's personal heraldry upon their right shoulder. When a captain dies his company is given to his successor or if he has none given to an officer Uther the Dragon deems worthy. The new captain can than either chose to keep the company title and heraldry or change it in favor of his own. All former heraldry is displayed in the Grand Hall over the sarcophagi of all the fallen captains and the current heraldry is hung above the Council Table in the Great Hall with the chapter's banner. Chapter Beliefs The Chalice Heralds believe that they are on a Great Quest sent by Sanguinius to find The Chalice and cure the sons of the Great Angel. To these end they will do almost anything to reach this goal. There have even been rumors that they will go to old Horus Heresy battle fields and dig up corpses and vehicles. But, these rumors have never been confirmed and anyone who spreads these rumors always seems to disappear. The Chalice Heralds venerate Sanguinius and try to honor him in all they do and uphold the Great Quest he has sent them. The chapter despises the twin curses of their father's line and see it as The Great Angel punishing his sons for failing him, the Great Quest is his was of redeeming his sons in his eyes. The Great Quest The Chalice Heralds believe that they are on a quest sent by Sanguinius to find The Chalice and cure the Sons of the Angel of the Red thirst and Black Rage. To uphold the The Great Quest the chapter spreads out across the Imperium looking for any relic or information that would lead them to The Chalice. After every two hundred years the chapter returns to The Herald's Keep to gather together all they have learned and place the relics they found in the Reclusiam for safe keeping. It is told that one day a member of the chapter will finally find The Chalice and many of the chapters captains desire to be the one to do it. Rivalries have formed between captains before but they are always under the watch of the chaplins for rivalry can push a space marine further than he would push him self but it can also get in the way of the greater goal of reaching The Chalice Traditions The Gathering The Gathering is where in hundred years the whole chapter makes it's way back to the Herald's Keep. When they have all gathered the Questor Companies begin to compete with one another in war games and tests of strength for a year. As this is happening the leaders of the chapter gather and discus the state of the Great Quest and compile what they have learned and found. This is also when the chapter places its dead in the catacombs and, if a captain has died, place his body and banner in the great hall and chose a successor for him. This is also a time in which the chapter gathers to remember the sacrifice of Sanguinius and praise him. After a year has past the chapter once again leaves to continue its search for the Chalice. The Oath of Blood Before every battle the members of the Chalice Heralds partake in the Oath of Blood. It is a ceremony in which each battle brother takes a knee and draws his combat knife, or sword depending on rank, he than puts the weapon tip on the ground in front of him and the pommel against his forehead. The brother than slides his hand along the blade and, as his blood drips down the blade, swears to up hold the honor of his chapter, the Great Quest, and Sanguinius. A more complex version of this happens when initiates become full members of the chapter, when a battle brother becomes a captain and at the end of the Gathering when the chapter as a whole vows to find the Chalice. Combat Doctrine The Chalice Heralds preferred tactic is to strike the enemy before they can prepare or react. They use multiple lightning assaults at different locations to confuse and sew terror into their foe. Drop pods rain down from above delivering tactical squads to key positions and gun emplacements. Assault marines jump from Storm Ravens to land in the midst of the enemy and tear them apart with chain swords. Stormtalon gunships rain fire from the sky. And Rhinos deliver more marines to where they are most needed and support them with heavy fire power. The Chalice Heralds' speed and mobility is the chapter's greatest strength, never letting up, always striking from different angles, and never giving their foe time to regroup. The effectiveness of this strategy has been proven on many battlefields and against many foes. Even so their are times that the use of strength and fire power out weigh mobility and speed. On these occasions the chapter makes use of its many sets of terminator armor and dreadnoughts. The Death Company Like all sons of the Angel, the Chalice Heralds make use of a Death Company where all those who have fallen to the Black Rage go. They are sent to the worst part of the fighting to die with honor for the chapter. Afterwards their bodies are gathered and taken back to the Herald's Keep to be placed in the catacombs underneath the fortress. Deathwatch Service The Chalice Heralds see service in the Deathwatch as a great honor and opportunity to gather information that would normally be withheld from them. For this reason it is not unlikely for a Chalice Herald to stay with the Deathwatch for a long period of time trying to gather as much information before returning to his chapter. While they are serving within the Deathwatch they strive to bring honor to their chapter and make reliable squad mates for this reason. Notable Members *'Chapter Master Uther the Dragon''' - Know for his iron will and great rage in battle. He is the guiding hand of the Great Quest and its iron fist. *'Wolfgang the Lance' - Sometimes know as The First Among Equals for his favor in the eyes of Uther, is the most senior of the captains and has one of the longest honor rolls in the chapter. He is Captain of Questor Company Gallant. *'Gadwin the Champion' - The youngest captain in the Chalice Heralds' history and the only member of the two Questor Companies to be sent to Baal to return. He is captain of Questor Company Retribution *'Chief Librarian Merlios ' - The Chief Librarian of the chapter he is the one who had the vision of The Chalice and is now encased in a dreadnought because of it. *'High Chaplin Mordred' - High Chaplin of the chapter and lord of the Knights Recluse, his makes sure that all in the chapter are upholding the Great Quest and that all relics are kept safe. *'Galehaut the Venerable' - Galehaut one of the oldest members of the chapter. He has be entombed in a venerable Contemptor Dreadnought. He is a member of Questor Company Gallant and is one of Wolfgang's most trusted advisers. Chapter Fleet The fleet of the Chalice Heralds is large for a non fleet based chapter for they need multiple vessels to search the Imperium for clues on The Great Quest. Companies have multiple ships that will spread out to search a lager area and than will converge when one has found something of interest. For if one Chalice Herald arrives there are surely more on the way. *''The Dragon's Lair'' (Battle-Barge): An ancient and venerable battle barge that serves as Uther the Dragon's personal flagship. Chapter Relics *''The Maw: A relic chain fist used by Uther The Dragon. It is said that it's teeth are sharper than any other and it can chew though the thickest of armor. *Swift Retribution: A jump pack warn by Gadwin the Champion that is know for its great speed and vicious machine spirit. *The Herald's Message: The scroll on which Chief Librarian Merlios wrote down his vision of The Chalice. *The Leviathan's Claws: ''A set of master crafted power claws once used by Amadeus the Leviathan *'The First Banner: '''An ancient banner that is the chapter banner of the Chalice Heralds. It hangings above the doorway to the great hall and is a source of great pride for all the brothers of the chapter. Chapter Appearance Wargear and Equipment The Chalice Heralds are known to make use of large than normal amounts of older patterns of armor and equipment in their armory, so much so that it is more common to see members wearing Mark IV 'Maximus' pattern power armor over the current Mark VII and VIII patterns. They also make use of many older marks of weapons including Phobos, Tigrus and Umbra pattern bolters. Chapter Colours The Chalice Heralds primarily wear light green coloured battle armour, with the exception of the shoulder pauldron insets, which are bone colour. The Imperialis or Aquila on the plaston (chest guard) is also bone in colour. Unlike their progenitors, the Blood Angels, the Chalice Heralds are notable adherents to the ''Codex Astartes. They do not use the same iconography and unique heraldry common among many Chapters of the Blood. The colour of the shoulder pauldron trim indicates squad specialty - Green (Tactical), Black (Devastator), Red (Assault) silver (Veteran) , and bronze (command). A black coloured company symbol on the right shoulder pauldron inset indicates the company of an individual battle-brother. Squad assignment, is designated by the black colour roman numeral on the left poleyn (knee guard). Officers and tactical sergeants are designated by a large red coloured vertical stripe painted on their helmet and the top of the their backpacks are also painted red. Officers are also known to make use of bone coloured tabards, to designated their senior status and stand out amongst their fellow warriors. Chapter Badge The Chalice Heralds' Chapter badge takes the form of a large stylised ebon coloured, winge-chalice, tipped as if pouring out its contents, centered upon a field of bone. Relations The chapter will fight alongside almost anyone who serves the Imperium and have served with many different forces. However those members of The Angel's sons that relish the red thirst and black rage will find the Chalice Heralds less than cooperative. On many ocasions the Chalice Heralds have butted heads with other members of the blood that views do not line up. Though there are no reports of blood shed there are chapters that the Chalice Heralds are less than willing to operate with. Allies The Knights Repentant The Chalice Heralds have a strange relationship with the Knights Repentant. Though the two chapters' combat doctrines are rather different from each other they find that they can complement each other. Kill teams on Vigilus will even work with one another to reach common goals. Enemies The Unbroken The Unbroken are a Chaos warband that has sworn revenge on the Chalice Heralds. Though the Chalice Heralds know not why they have they are happy to dispense the Emperor's justice on the traitors. Notable Quotes By: "I always get chills around them." "Who brother?" "The Knights. They being here is a bad omen."'' — Brother Nathaniel to Brother Avrik about the Knights Recluse About the Chalice Heralds Add your own if you'd like. "An aggressive leader, pushing a chapter to extinction with zealotry as his shield. Tell me brother, does it remind you of anything?" "Are you suggesting that if we had not deposed Tarkhut, we would be at the same fate? Remember your place Sergeant, Tarkhut may no longer lead us, but he is still captain, and still far above our rank." "Does Lichezhong not teach us to be naysmiths? to critique our superiors?" "Lord Sejong teaches us to critique their strategy, not their personality. Or i would have much to say about yours." — Conversation between Intercessor Sergeant Danhae and Devastator sergeant Kong Ming comparing the rule of captain Tarkhut to the near extinction of the Chalice Heralds Feedback I would love to hear what you guys have to say! Constructive criticism is always welcome and advice even more so. This is my first homebrew and I hope you guys enjoy it :) Thank You I would like to thank the admins for their help on my page and artwork of my chapter. I very much appreciate it. And thank you all who read my article :) Gallery File:Herald_Gadwin.jpg|Gadwin The Champion, Captain of Questor Company Retribution File:Herald_tatical.jpg|Chalice Herald Tactical Marine File:Herald_tatical_sergent.jpg|Tactical Sergeant File:Herald_devistator.jpg|Chalice Herald Devastator Marine File:Herald_assault.jpg|Chalice Herald Assault marine Heralds Kinights Recluse.jpg|A member of the Knights Recluse File:Chalice Heralds Company.jpg|RL Chalice Heralds File:Uther Honor Guard.jpg|RL Uther the Dragon and honor guard File:Gadwin Honour Guard.jpg|RL Gadwin the Champion and honor guard File:Chalice Heralds Vet Sqd.jpg|RL Chaplin, apothecary, and company veterans squad File:Wolfgang Primaris LT.jpg|RL Company Ancient, Wolfgang the Lance (Old model will probably redo him), Primaris lieutenant, and assault squad in back File:Chalice Heralds Death Co.jpg|RL Death Company squad, and High Chaplin Mordred File:Merlios Drop Pod.jpg|RL Drop pod, Chief Librarian Merlios, contemptor dreadnought, and dreadnought File:Chalice Heralds Land Speeder.jpg|RL Land Speeder File:Chalice Heralds Tact Sqd 1.jpg|RL tactical marines 1 File:Chalice Heralds Tact Sqd 2.jpg|RL Tactical marines 2 File:Chalice Heralds Razorback.jpg|RL Razorback Video Category:Blood Angels Successors Category:Imperium Category:Space Marine Chapters Category:Space Marines Category:Unknown Founding